New Beginnings
by darkphoneix
Summary: Ranma gets a chance to fix his life, but nothing ever goes as planned.
1. New Beginnings 1

  
  
Slowly Ranma awoke, the early morning sun bright in his eyes. His entire body was sore and at least two ribs were cracked."Damned Pervert!" At least he didn't have to worry about the little panty thief for a while. Sitting up, Ranma surveyed his surroundings. They were, he decided, not even close to his room where he had collapsed the night before from exhaustion. His father was laying on the other side of a burnt out fire, snoring loudly. Surely the Tendos hadn't kicked him out now that Happosai was no longer a threat. Sure the engagement between himself and Akane hadn't been going to well, what with the constant abuse and hospitalization he endured, but the fathers wouldn't have let a little thing like someone else's life get in the way of fulfilling their sake induced dreams. No, something else must have happened. But what?  
  
While Ranma was trying to figure out just what kind of predicament he had somehow gotten himself into, his father was stealthily approaching him from behind. Soundlessly he readied himself to kick his son in the back of the head and finish it off with a prime insult on his manhood. The sneaky attack never made it through to Ranma though, since Ranma no longer seemed to be sitting on his bedroll. Instead he rested comfortably on Genma's outstretched leg. Had he blinked?   
  
"Lay off Oyagi, I'm, thinking!" Ranma growled, still perched on his father's leg.  
  
Normally Genma would have used the opening his son had left to enquire upon how much thinking must hurt him, but he was too excited. Today was the day that they reached Jusenkyou. Years of searching had finally culminated into one magnificent moment as he said,"Quit whining," he kicked Ranma into the air, but his son landed easily on the tip of index finger, then used it to spring up to a standing position,"we've got a big day ahead of us. Jusenkyou should be just around that mountain over there if the Guide was correct."  
  
Several things clicked in Ranma's mind all at once. That fateful day where he had recieved his curse had started exactly as this one had. Except for him being in a slightly different position and the outcome of the fight his father had tried to start being decided several minutes later, everything was the same. Oyagi had said those same words and possessed the same glazed look in his eyes that some people could mistake for insanity or drunkenness, but to all those who knew him, it was just another sign of how remarkably stupid the man was. Hurriedly Ranma lifted his shirt and saw the dark blue and purple bruises he'd aquired fighting Happosai. Good he still had his body, fully trained and only slightly worse for wear. Ranma didn't know how, didn't even want to know how, but he was over two years in the past. He could fix everything! Running to the small stream they had camped beside, Ranma doused himself with water. Nothing happened! The curse could be easily avoided as could the entire amazon situation. If he played his cards right he wouldn't even have any fiances. At the wrost he might end up with Kasumi or Nabiki. That wasn't so bad.  
  
"...you listening to me, Boy? Get packed. We're leaving!" bellowed Genma. Why was Ranma splashing himself like an idiot. He seemed a little taller. Must be a trick of the light.   
  
To Genma's utter suprise, Ranma said,"That's right. We're going right back to Japan," and started gathering his meager possessions. First things first. He had to get his mom and her damned katana from over his head. Ranma had no fear of convincing his mother wether he was manly or not. Without the curse he was almost her ideal man, though, he wouldn't act like a complete pervert like she wanted him too. Ukyou wouldn't even be problem. Whenever or wherever she showed up, all Ranma would have to do was not tell her she was cute and instead of a fiance he would end up with another rival who hated his guts. They much easier to deal with.  
  
"Ranma what nonsense are you speaking? Of course we aren't going back to Japan! Not until we visit Jusenkyou." Genma stood waiting, expecting Ranma to give in at any second.  
  
Needless to say, Ranma stood his ground. After five minutes of steadily telling his father that there was no way in hell that they were to Jusenkyou, the older man attacked his son. Even though he was injured, Ranma was far from outclassed. The whole reason that he'd fought Happosai was because the pervert had found an ancient vault equipped with a powerful demon summoning apparatus. For over a month Ranma had been the subject of so many demon attacks that some wierd magic girls, the Sailor Senshi, had started patrolling Nerima instead of their own Juuban. The time spent fighting demons allowed Ranma to fight all out against opponents who were often-times stronger or even occassionally faster. With no constraints, Ranma's technique had, for lack of a better term, bloomed. Chi now flowed more rapidly and efficiently through his body, adding strength and speed to his already impressive abilites. It also had the effect of increasing his durability. The bruising on his chest was a prime example, having been the only damage taken when a giant Happosai had batted him across Nerima with a concrete telephone pole. Genma was quite simply beaten down.  
  
Genma had gone so far as to use the forbidden techniques, thanks to a really convenient flash of memery, against Ranma, only to find that his son not only knew them, but performed them better than he, the creator of the techniques, did. It was very educational for the man. The lesson being to go along with Ranma until he could figure out how his son's ability and knowledge had increased so dramatically. Unconsciousness came swiftly.  
  
Some time later that day, Ranma happily walked farther and farther away from Jusenkyou and the amazons. He'd been thinking and had decided that if he wanted to keep using the techniques learned from the amazons then he would have to change the names, at least, and in the case of the Hiryu Shoten Ha go so far as to alter the spiral pattern used to ignite it and possibly, if was possible, change the color of the cyclone. Anything less and he could find a whole tribe of amazons breathing down his neck wanting to know why he was using their stuff and how he'd learned it in the first place. The Umisenken and Yamasenken were simpler. His idiot father from the future had finally taught them to him in their entirety and he was keeping them.  
  
Genma almost begged Ranma to allow them to go back. He would have if he hadn't felt an odd sensation as they left the valley. It was his danger sense. But it wasn't warning off approaching danger. No it was the feeling he got whenever danger passed. Thinking back, he saw that he'd been so excited that their journey was nearing an end that he'd ignored his own senses. Maybe Ranma was right. Oh well. The faster they got back to Japan the faster that the Tendo and Saotome lines could be joined. Now which one of Soun's daughters should Ranma be engaged to...  
****  
  
Akane came storming into the house after school, chanting,"I'll kill him," repeatedly.  
  
"Akane, whatever is wrong?" asked Kasumi sweetly.   
  
"Kuno is what's wrong! He told the whole school that the only way anybody can date me is if they beat me up first! I'm going to go to my room now and think of ways to make his death more painful." She picked up the school bag that she had thrown down in anger and started to march upstairs.  
  
"Hold on Akane. We have visitors and father wants you to meet them."  
  
Akane sighed in resignation. It was probably just another of her dad's old drinking buddies."Okay. let's get this over with." Her father, along with Nabiki, were gathered around the sitting room table with a man and woman. Behind them, lounging lazily, a boy about her own age rested.  
  
"Ah Akane, kasumi found you," her father said cheerfully."Say hi to the Saotomes. Genma is my oldest friend and was once my training companion. This lovely lady is his wife Nodoka and their son is Ranma."  
  
"Pleasure meeting you all," Akane replied with as much courtosy and politeness as she could muster.  
  
"You have such wonderful daughters Tendo-san!" exclaimed Nodoka."I really must see about getting one or two of my own." She elbowed Genma and grinned at him lecherously and quite unashamedly.  
  
"Yes, that would be great. Now since we're all gathered," Soun looked to Genma who nodded,"Ranma these are my three daughters; choose one and she will be your wife."  
  
Akane gasped, as did her sisters. He'd gone to far this time! She looked at Ranma and saw a stupid grin plastered across his face. Great, just great! He was a hentai!  
  
Nodoka cleared her throat demurely, but in a manner that caught everyone's attention."I'm sorry to do this, since I it appears you two have your hearts set on uniting our families, but I never agreed upon this arrangement. Therefore, I'm sorry to say, there will be no marriage between the Tendo and Saotome families unless those entering into matrimony do so upon their own free will."  
  
There was a sharp intake of breath from the two older men, then Soun began squalling like a baby and Genma began shouting. He went on for a couple of minutes, questioning his wife's sanity, honor, parentage, and right to make decisions concerning their son. It stopped, however, when she reached to her side and began carefully unwrapping a silk bound object. Instantly Genma assumed an expression of unbelievable innocence that no one believed."Sorry dear," he muttered.  
  
Nodoka smiled brightly and said,"Besides, my friend Noriko Kino and I decided long ago that our children would marry!"  
  
Akane was relieved that she wouldn't be engaged to a 'boy', but at the same time she felt sorry for Ranma who she now knew must have been smiling because he knew that he wasn't going to be forced to marry her or any of her sisters. His smile had slipped from his face as his mother told them of her plans and a sickly grimace took its place. He began muttering under his breath and Akane could faintly hear him counting backwards from ten repeatedly. She did that simetimes so she would be calm enough not to kill Kuno. Ranma must be very upset.   
  
"Mom, are you joking?" Ranma asked seriously. When his mother nodded affirmatively Ranma's face darkened furhter and he began breathing raggedly.  
****  
  
Damn! Things were getting wierd. Since when had his cooky mother been arranging marriages for him? She sure hadn't mentioned it before time had reset. And why had she waited until now to tell him? They had been home for two days; plenty of time to bring up an arranged marriage. He sighed in frustration. Nothing could ever be easy for him. Oh well, if it didn't work out with him and the Kino girl he could always leave. It was not like he cared enough for his parents that he couldn't do without them. And honor be damned! He lived by his own code of honor and it didn't say anything about being forced to marry a girl he had never even met.  
  
They left the Tendos early in the evening with promises to return for a visit or dinner sometime. The walk to the bus stop was long and boring so Ranma decided to forego the entire thing and took to the rooftops. Without exerting himself to heavily, he arrived home within fifteen minutes, a trip that would have easily been triple that on the bus. He entered through the back of the house and made his way to the kitchen. He hadn't eaten anything at the Tendos' and he was ravenous. A minute later he had a four inch thick sandwhich in hand and a whole bag of chips tucked under his arm. Sitting down in the living room he sat his food on the coffee table and grabbed the television remote. Flipping past a suprising number of adult channels, he eventually found a Sumo match and relaxed while he ate.   
  
Behind him he heard the door knob turned and was suprised that his parents were home so early. The bus driver must have been in a hurry. With his guard lowered, there was no more food so Genma wouldn't be a problem, Ranma was taken totally by suprise by a well placed blow to the back of his head. He flew off the couch and barely avoided impacting the TV by flipping himself around and springing off the wall. Reoriented and unaffected by the attack, he saw that his attacker was a tall, brown haired girl in a school uniform.   
  
"Who are you?" she demanded,"And what are you doing here?" Finishing, she took up a tight karate stance that left her right side terribly open to several debilitating attacks.  
  
"I'm Ranma and this is my house!" Ranma shouted at her. The journey back to Japan had been a month of freedom from fiances and their violent attentions and he'd be damned if he let some complete stranger start bashing on him again.  
  
"Ranma? Ranma Saotome?" Ranma nodded."Ah, damn," she mumbled."I was hoping you wouldn't come back."  
  
"Just who are 'you' and what are you doing in 'my' house?"  
  
"I'm Makoto Kino and I came to visit Aunty Saotome." She hesitated and took a deep breath."I am not going to marry you!" she suddenly exclaimed.  
  
Marry. Kino. 'Ah, damn' was right. Would it really hurt to have an at least peaceful or halfway dignified meeting with one of his fiances?"Look," he said calmly,"Makoto, I have no intention of marrying you either so don't worry about it."  
  
Her eyes narrowed."What's that supposed to mean? Am I not good enough for you?"  
  
His parents really knew how to pick them."Geeze, don't go jumping to conclusions. I just meant that I'm not gonna let anybody force me to marry someone that I don't want to marry."  
  
Makoto eyed him warily. He seemed sincere, but it could all be a ruse to lull her into lowering her guard so he could attack her. That is if he wasn't really Ranma. If he was...she still wasn't going to marry him. He was cute, though.  
  
It was at this time that Ranma's parents entered through the slightly ajar front door."Oh Makoto-chan, I see that you've already met your fiance!"  
  
"Un huh," she answered weekly. He was really her fiance. Kami-sama, the other girls were never going to let her hear the end of it. Usagi was going to be vry very annoying.  
  
"Don't mind us. Genma and I will go pick up a few things for dinner." Nodaka hurried her still upset husband out of the house. They had been indoors for no more than thirty seconds.  
  
Ranma returned to his seat on the couch and motioned for Makoto to join him. When she had, ha asked,"Do you mind explaining how we got engaged?"  
  
Leaning back, Makoto began."Aunty says that ever since they were girls, seven years old I believe, that they planned to have their children marry each other. My parents died a few years ago in a plane crash so they never told me. Last year Aunty showed up and told me about the engagement, but since she hadn't heard from you in so long I thought that you were dead or had run off. So much for hoping."  
  
Ranma didn't say anything. He just turned his attention back to the TV and tried to remember what he'd done to piss off Kami-sama. It was really the only explanation. Even when he got a chance to fix a lot of the bad parts of his life, new ones kept cropping up. At least Makoto didn't seem like a hormonally imbalanced maniac.  
  
Almost an hour later, Makoto finally got the nerve to speak."Aunty Saotome says that you've been on a training trip for most of your life. You should be really good right?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm the best you'll ever meet," replied Ranma with absolute confidence.  
  
Mokoto snorted. It was a wonder that he wasn't floating around the room with his head as swollen as it was."Want to spar? I'd like to see how we compare."  
  
Ranma shrugged indifferently. Sparring didn't mean that he had to hit her.  
****  
  
Ranma frowned to himself. Makoto really sucked. Akane could have taken her down blindfolded. Of course she had started screaming at him when he gave her an assessment of her skills. That was why he was currently leaning against the door to his bedroom so that Makoto couldn't get to him. Denied entry, she had taken to pounding on the door repeatedly and the sound was really starting to get annoying. It was also giving Ranma a headache.  
  
"Come on, cut it out! I said I was sorry!" Ranma shouted.  
  
If anything, the volume and strenth of the assault on the door increased. Between bonejarring impacts, Makoto demanded,"Get your ass out here and let me kick it!"  
  
Damned Tomboy. Couldn't his mom have gotten him hitched to a nice, non-violent girl?   
****  
  
Damned jerk! If only she could get a hold of him when she was transformed. Then he'd beg her not to fry him. Maybe she could get a thunderbolt under the door. Nah. She didn't want to blow up Aunty's house, even if the woman's son was an insufferable piece of shit. Just as she was sure that he would give up, her communicator began to beep. Another time then.   
  
Makoto rushed to the bathroom and activated the small screen of the wrist- mounted device."What's wrong Ami?" she asked after seeing the girl, already transformed, on the other line.  
  
"There's a powerful monster and a giant gnome fighting in Cherry Hill Park. We haven't been able to get a hit in edgewise and could really use some help."  
  
"I'll be there as soon as I can, but I'm in Nerima so it'll take a while."  
  
Makoto waited until she was almost a block away from the Saotome home before ducking into an alley and transforming into Sailor Jupiter. With magically enhanced speed she reached the park in fifteen minutes to find her fellow senshi still waiting for the combatants to stand still long enough to take then down.  
  
"Jupiter, you're finally here!" Moon enthused.  
  
"So what did I miss?" Jupiter asked Mercury, the most level headed of the group.  
  
"Nothing really. The Chimera and the gnome are moving too fast for us to risk attacking. I have isolated an unusual magical aura around the Chimera, but I can't say whether it is offensive, defensive, or neutral in nature. Also the gnome isn't nearly as big as it appears. My computer has extrapilated it to be no more than forty-five centimeters in height. It's giving off huge amounts of energy to maintain the illusion."  
  
Confused, Jupiter asked,"If it's only an illusion, how can it attack?"  
  
"Besides the energy blasts and explosives it has been throwing around, it simply attacks the Chimera physically. The energy that it is using becomes quite solid for a split second during every physical attack."  
  
Jupiter trusted Mercury and her assessment of the situation. It didn't really matter if she understood it all. She noticed a news crew setting up cameras across the park and pointed it out to the other senshi."They could get hurt."  
  
"We can't risk getting taken out yet. We may need the whole team to deal with the winner." Usagi was rather proud of her wisdom.  
****  
  
Ranma waited several minutes just to make sure that Makoto was gone. When he was sure the threat had passed he went back down stairs and threw himself onto the couch. He was about to change the channel when a special news bulletin flashed. A few seconds later the feed switched to live and Ranma was treated to a suprising sight. Happosai and Taro were duking it out. That wouldn't have been bad, but Happosai wasn't supposed to escape from the cave for several months and Taro shouldn't have arrived from China until several months after that. Just more proof that this world was slightly different from his own. The camera panned thirty degrees and Ranma saw the Sailor Senshi standing in a group, obviously waiting for a chance to fight.   
  
Now Ranma became concerned. When he had been fighting Happosai's demons the Sailor Senshi had tried to help in many of the later fights, but almost always showed up to late, the travel time being to long. They had tried though, and even saved his life once when he was attacked by three powerful demons. They were going to need his help, especially if the Old Pervert saw their costumes.  
  
The trip across the rooftops to Juuban was over quickly. From there Ranma only had to follow the sounds of police sirens and other emergency vehicles to the park which had been roped off to protect civilians. Ranma ignored the oficer who tried to detain him and leapt over the barricade, clearing a small pond and a cluster of trees. Using tree limbs like he would rooftops, Ranma reached the embattled area of park in only a few seconds.   
  
If anything, the destruction was even more apparent than the TV had shown. Smoking craters and uprooted or broken trees littered the ground and two or three statues had been turned to rubble. He watched as Taro's cursed form and the chi enlarged body of Happosai exchanged blows. It became apparent that Happosai's chi was beginning to run low when Ranma started spotting small patches on the pervert's body that allowed him to see through to the other side. Why was he wasting so much energy fighting the minotaur when he could have stayed small and accomplished the same thing? It was a question better left for later. Hopping out of his perch in the tree, Ranma planted his feet firmly on the ground and summoned up his battle aura. The resulting explosion of force tore the tree behind him out of the ground and sent it hurtling into the air. The grass followed shortly after. By the time it was fully formed Ranma was standing in a foot deep crater.  
  
"Moko Takabisha!" he shouted. From his outstretched hands a beam of chi blasted towards the ground at Happosai and Taro's feet. Ranma's aura vanished into the beam causing a pulse to run through it that caught up with the forefront of the attack just as it struck the ground. The chi blast exploded violently, throwing Happosai and Taro a hundred yards in opposite directions and pelting them with dirt and concrete.  
  
Happosai was the first to recover, though his form was back to its normal shrunken self. He looked, wild-eyed, around for the third party. When his gaze locked on the glowing Ranma he snarled and reached into his robe and withdrew a handful of happodarikin. After igniting them with a wisp of chi, he hurled them at Ranma and turned his attention back to Taro who was advancing on him again.  
  
Contemptuosly, Ranma slashed out with his hand, calling,"Kijin Raishu Dan." The large vacuum blade came into contact with the bombs halfway from Ranma, simultaneously snuffing their fuses and pulverizing them. Despite his skills, Ranma knew that he could not tkae on both Happosai and Taro. He had to get some help or hope that he could just fight the weakened winner.  
****  
  
"Guys!" Mercury screamed and began pointing. The Senshi followed her finger and saw a bright blue torch-like flame appear. Before they could figure out what it was, though, a beam of blue light blazed from it and struck the ground beneath the Chimera and the gnome. They gasped collectively seeing the two giant thrown like dolls across the park. When the combatants landed, the gnome shrunk rapidly to its true size and turned towards the new attacker. He threw some of his bombs at the figure and turned back to the Chimera.  
  
Jupiter and the others watched raptly as the figure waved his hand and a created an air distortion of some kind that destroyed the explosives. While her friends were trying to determine who the third party was, Jupiter was starring at him in shock. It was Ranma! Her unwanted jerk of a fiance had just thrown a very powerful energy blast. But how? He hadn't used magic. He started glowing brightly again as she watched, then, in a single bound, Ranma exploded into the air, angling himself through the air so that he would land behind them.  
  
Saturn screamed in fright when he landed near her. She made a feeble swing at him with the silence glaive, but he dodged it easily.  
  
"Hey watch it with that thing! I just came to help out," complained Ranma.  
  
"Who are you?" demanded Mars.  
  
"I'm Ranma. Nice to meet you too," he replied sarcastically.  
  
Mercury shoved Venus and Neptune aside and asked excitedly,"How did you do that?"  
  
Ranma waved the matter off, saying,"Lots of training." Ranma's attention was caught by a flying tree that Taro had thrown at Happosai. It'd been deflected though, and was heading straight for them. Without warning he fired a small chi blast from his hand. The senshi prepared to attacl him thinking that the blst was meant for them, but it soon became obvious that Ranma had been aiming for the tree when it burst into a cloud of leaves and splinters.  
  
"Thanks," said Moon weakly.  
  
"No problem. Besides, how could you girls help me beat Taro and Happosai if you got crushed by a tree?"  
  
"Taro, Happosai? What are they?" Moon asked Ranma.  
  
"Taro is the monster. If we could hit him with some warm water he would change back human and between the beaten he's taken from Happosai and my chi blast, his human form should be pretty helpless. I'll have to take care of Happosai, though, because if the Pervert sees you in those skirts he'll be almost unbeatable."  
  
Mercury and Neptune both possessed water based attacks, but Mercury's attacks all ranged from freezing water to cold water and she couldn't alter the temperature of them. So she asked Neptune,"Can you hit...Taro with warm or hot water?"  
  
Neptune nodded."If he stays still long enough."  
  
Ranma smiled. It was all coming together now."Great. With him out of the way I can handle Happosai on my own." Ranma jumped a good distance away from the senshi and took aim on Happosai. He was easily dodging his larger foe's clumsy attacks and striking out with his chi-enhanced pipe whenever the opportunity presented itself. Ranma waited for the right moment, gathering energy in either hand. When he felt that Happosai was sufficiently positioned Ranma fired one of the charges at the ground, throwing up a cloud of dust and knocking his target into the air. The second blast only partially grazed the ancient man as, but it was enough to separate him from Taro. Leaving the senshi to rake care of Taro, Ranma went chasing after Happosai.  
  
He caught up with him just as he was pulling himself out of the ground."Why are you picking on me?" he shouted.  
  
"Because you're a perverted old freak and it's fun to kick your ass," answered Ranma wryly.  
  
Steam was literally pouring from the man's ears ans he snarled,"I'll teach you to respect your elders, boy."  
  
Too easy. Where before, Happosai had been calm and calculating, he was now enraged and giving off the battle aura to prove it. This Happosai wouldn't even think to look for the spiral as he was led into it.  
****  
  
Jupiter covertly watched Ranma, occassionally turning around a calling down a bolt of lightning to help keep Taro pinned in so that Neptune could hit him with a deep submerge. She came to the conclusion, as she watched Ranma deftly dodging Happosai's super fast attacks, that her fiance was not human or that is he was then he was packing some serious magic. Behind her she heard a cheer from Moon and turned to find a naked boy boy laying face down on a patch of soggy scorched earth. Back at Ranma's fight she saw Ranma throw a sloppy uppercut, and thought that he had made a serious mistake, but when a cyclone formed around Happosai she realized that it had been intentional. She didn't even try to think of how he made it or how he made red and blue dragons encircle it. Triumphantly Ranma threw his arms into the air and a massive ball of energy formed at the base of the now tornado sized cyclone. It flew upward and struck the barely visible form of Happosai. When it impacted him there was an explosion that shattered the tornado and threw the now unconscious Happosai into the wide blue yonder.  
  
Ranma briefly returned to tell them that Taro would become a monster again if he were to be exposed to cold water then he slowly faded from view before their very eyes.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. New Beginnings 2

  
  
Ranma walked casually into his house and was nearly blinded by the beaming smile his mother focussed on him. She rushed forward and grabbed him in an incredibly tight grip and said,"My manly, manly son!" For over a minute this treatment continued until Ranma could pry himself free. When he did he found his father standing in front of the TV, his mouth slightly agape and a thin line of drool running down his chin.  
  
Reverently, Genma said,"M-my son, b-b-beat the M-Master."  
  
The TV was still tuned to the news station and there was a large picture of himself being shown on the screen. The reporter was saying,'...and as our viewers at home witnessed, this mysterious youth appeared and took control of the situation. Who is this new hero and just what are his intentions? Tune into our Eleven o'clock broadcast for more info. Remember, if you know this young man, please call into the studio. There is a twenty thousand yen reward for his idenity.'  
  
Oh shit! He was f@%#$d! Now everyone in Tokyo was going to be looking for him and when they did find him, as they were surely going to do, he wouldn't have 'any peace'.  
  
"Oh Ranma, you've made your father so proud!" Genma took his turn embracing his son, adding to it a series of intense slaps on the back.  
  
"Don't forget how he handled that monster," Nodoka added.  
  
"To think that my years of sacrifice to teach you the Art have finally paid off...I must tell Tendo! He'll be shocked!" Genma rushed into the kitchen and the nearest telephone.  
  
"I'm going to call the news studio now. I can't wait to tell the neighbors. They're all going to be so jealous that their children aren't super-heroes like my son." She raced into the kitchen, intent on wrenching control of the phone from her husband.  
  
Dejectedly, Ranma went to his room and locked himself in. He could at least enjoy the last few hours of peace that he would have for a very long time. How did the Sailor Senshi manage to keep their idenity a secret? It wasn't like they wore masks or anything.  
****  
  
"Um, guys?" Makoto cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. They had gathered at Rei's temple to discuss the newest addition to the wierdness that was Juuban.  
  
"What is it, Mako-chan?" Usagi asked, snatching a muffin from Rei's plate while the girl was distracted.  
  
Their arguing over whether Ranma was friend or foe was getting heated, the Inner Senshi thinking he was good, and the Outers thinking that he was up to no good."I, well...sorta know Ranma...kinda." Makoto squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the imminent explosion that her words were sure to provoke. Nothing happened though. Slowly, she peeked through a barely open eye, then opened them and, much more timidly than anyone suspected she was capable of, said,"He's my...fiance."  
  
This time there was the expected explosion. Everyone, even Ami, exclaimed their shock and confusion. Questions went unheard as all the girls spoke at once, loudly. Eventually their momentum began to slacken and cooler heads prevailed, namely a pair of talking cats.  
  
"Are you saying that you were engaged to this Ranma during the Silver Millenium?" Artemis asked.  
  
Luna performed the feline equivalent of a bitch slap on Artemis and hissed in his ear,"You silly cat! Makoto leaned the other way back then. Like Haruka and Michuru." Then so that the others could hear she said,"Sorry. Artemis should have known that you weren't engaged during the Silver Millenium. That means that you are currently his fiance. Care to explain?"  
  
Makoto answered,"It's an enraged marriage. My mom and Aunty Saotome set it up years ago, before either of us were even born. I didn't even meet him until an hour before Ami called me to the park."  
  
Setsuna walked into the room, apparently undisturbed by the stares she recieved, and took a seat on an unoccupied cushion."I suppose that you want to know about Ranma?" Everyone nodded."Sorry. The only thing I can say for sure about him is that he is a time traveler and that he is multiphasic."  
  
"Multiphasic? What does that mean?" Usagi asked, ignoring the importance that Ranma had traversed time.  
  
"It means," answered Ami,"that he exists on more than a single plane of reality. May I ask how this is possible?"  
  
Setsuna replied,"That, I'm afraid is beyond even my expertise. However it is accomplished, though, the effects are obvious: I can view niether his past, future, or even present."  
  
"So what are we supposed to do?" Rei asked indignantly."We all saw what he was capable of. Are we supposed to attack him when we don't even know how powerful he is or if he's even evil?"  
  
"Just because he isn't evil doesn't mean necessarily that we won't have to destroy him." Setsuna continued."As long as I can't judge his effect on the time stream, we must consider him an enemy."  
  
"Perhaps we should attempt to discover his intentions," said Ami."He doesn't know that Makoto is Sailor Jupiter and he might let something slip, a clue to his purpose here, or an indication of his character."  
  
"I can tell you his character. He's a jerk! He wouldn't even hit me when I sparred with him!"  
  
"It's so romantic. He didn't want to harm his betrothed," Minako sighed. She was bombarded with pillows and other miscellaneous things for the next couple minutes.  
  
"He did help us today. Couldn't he have just as easily attacked us?" commented Hotaru shyly."If he had blasted us like he did Happosai and Taro..."  
  
"Speaking of Taro, what had become of him?" Setsuna asked.   
  
"We told the police what Ranma said about cold and hot water. They have him in some kind of special containment ward in Nerima. It seems that it was built for this type of situation. Don't ask why, I haven't a clue," answered Ami.  
  
Makoto watch alarm began beeping and she hurriedly said,"Oh no, I'm late! I was supposed to help Aunty Saotome cook tonight. She'll be upset." She shuddered, gathered her things up and said her goodbyes.  
  
"Watch out for Ranma," Rei called out to her as she ran out the door."  
****  
  
Finished packing his few belongings, Ranma slung his pack over his shoulder and reached under his matress. He pulled out a large roll of yen bills that he had kept hidden from his father. The news vans had begun arriving only five minutes earlier, but now the street was lined with them. Reporters and their camera operators swarmed on the lawn hoping for a glimpse of Ranma. He would get in touch with his meddling parents when he had settled down. Most likely he would have to move to America to get away from the Press. At least he could speak passable english. Taking one last peek out the window, Ranma saw his father explaining to a hordre of microphone toting men and women that the Saotome and Tendo schools of Anything Goes Martial Arts were responsible for defeating Taro and Happosai. They actually believed that Ranma had been sent by his master to defeat them. Baka Oyaji. The back yard was clear as he climbed out the bathroom window.   
  
Suddenly, just as Ranma jumped, the world went white and he felt a strange tugging sensation. The next thing he knew, he was standing in a large room that looked as if it had been borrowed from from a Star Trek set. Several men and women in lab coats and a larger number of armed soldiers stood in various places.   
  
"Welcome to Project Waverider, Mr. Saotome," a pretty gaijin scientist greeted him. Her brown hair was pulled back in a bun and she wore a pair of wire-framed glasses with slightly darkened lenses.  
  
Ranma didn't do anything overtly hostile. Even with his skills there was a good chance that the soldiers, at least they were dressed like soldiers, could shoot him before he escaped. There were too many of them and too many people that could get caught in the crossfire."You've got me at a disadvantage," he finally said.  
  
"Sorry. I'm Dr. Peterson." She pointed to two men and said,"This is Dr. Takashi and Dr. Noyuki. I assume that you are wondering why we brought you here?"  
  
"That, and how you brought me here."  
  
"Fair enough. If you'll follow me." She led Ranma through a maze of computer terminals and corridors until they passed through a huge steel door. When they entered the cavernous room that it led to, their escort of soldiers split in two and took up position on each side of the door.  
  
Once inside of the room, Ranma follwed her to the railing of the platform they were standing on. Below them, on a floor that must have spanned a dozen square miles, were thousands of huge metal spheres. They were illuminated by an even greater number of flood lights hung from the cieling."Woh, what is all that?"  
  
"That, my friend, is Project Waverider the last chance humanity has at a future."  
  
"Okaaay, but how do I play into this?" Ranma asked. How were a bunch of giant balls going to save humanity, anyway?  
  
"First I believe you need to understand the problem." Dr. Peterson took a deep breath and continued,"Earth's orbit will soon be carrying it through a section of heavily distorted space that a deep space probe discovered two decades ago. The effect this will have on Earth will be catastrophic, literally tearing the planet apart. My father began working on a way to save our species as soon as the discovery was made. In cooperation with Japan, Great Britain, and a number of wealthy industrialists, America has been preparing Waverider for fifteen years. When the Earth passes through the distorted space, those spheres will 'ride' the spacial waves into a dimensional tear that will carry them to a nearby habitable planet. Each sphere contains equipment, food, and everything else we could possibly need to survive."  
  
It all sounded like science fiction to Ranma, but the Doctor sounded sincere. Still she hadn't answered his question. Before he could ask, she said."The reason we need you is rather unusual. To create a large enough tear in space to transport anything larger than a person requires an astronmical amount of energy that we could not hope to produce. We were desperately looking for a solution to this limitation when our the Main Computer locked on to your quantum signature, or at least what it could detect of it. What it discovered is that your body is not grounded in a single dimension, but exists partially in all dimensions, mostly as energy. By using that energy as a catalyst, we can make whatever size tear we need."  
  
That was sorta cool. If the lady was being honest then he was going to be responsible for saving...everybody."Will I be in any danger?" Not that he cared. If it came down to his survival or that of the entire human race, he would choose the human race over himself in a heartbeat.  
  
Dr. Peterson smiled reassuringly."None at all. And in return for your help, ten waveriders have been allocated for your use."  
  
"Waveriders?"  
  
"The big metal spheres down there. Each one is a hundred feet in diameter. Three of the ten you'll be given are personnel carriers and can hold fifty people each. I'll give you a folder of information on the others and their functions when we get back to my office."  
  
"So I get to pick a hundred and forty-nine people to take with me?" Ranma didn't like having to choose who would live and who would die. He didn't like it at all.  
  
"One hundred and nineteen. Thirty of those going with your group will be technicians and other personnel."  
  
Ranma asked no further questions. He followed the doctor to her office and after recieving an inch thick packet of papers, was escorted to a set of sleeping quarters. Once there he sat down at a desk that was built into the wall and thought about what he'd been told. He didn't understand most of what Dr. Peterson told him, but the gist of it was that he had to pick who he was going to take with him and who would be left behind to die. Ranma decided to put off making any kind of decisions until later, instead he cracked open the sealed folder he had been given and began to read. The planet they would be going to was designated NEO and was almost the exact size of Earth. It had a very stable climate, staying nearly thrity degrees celsius year round, due to some atmospheric thing that Ranma didn't understand. The plants that would be grown there were genetically engineered to deal with the poor mineral content of the soil. After that there was a lot of technical data and charts and graphs that Ranma didn't care about. He skipped through the report until he found his group's predetermined landing sight. Reading it, he discovered that it was one of the best ones available on the entire planet. The survey satellites had discovered large mineral deposits within the area and there was a high water table with plenty of room for crops and livestock. The landing pods, or waveriders as Dr. Peterson called them, were all grouped into bunches of ten. Three for personnel. A nano-manufactory capable of producing nearly anything as long as it had the materials to work with was one whole pod. Two contained modular vehicles that could be modified for different tasks. One would be used to store seedlings, seeds, and various lifestock that would be used to start new animal populations. One was stocked with building materials, solar panels and portable fusion generators, and waste and water processors. An entire pod was dedicated to weapons and ammunition which upset Ranma because he disliked the use of any weapon, but when he read that the planet's indigenous wild life was mostly large and dinosaur-like he changed his mind. The last was set aside for a small amount of personal belongings that each person could bring with them.  
  
By the time Ranma finished reading he was dead tired and he had a splitting headache. He stumbled over to a wallmounted cot and fell asleep within minutes of laying down.  
****  
  
The next day, rather than complaining about being brought to wherever he was without his permission, Ranma poured all his energy into trying to decide who he would take with him. When it came down to it, Ranma didn't really know that many people and most of those he did know would be pretty useless on NEO. Of course his parents would have to go, and without a doubt the Tendo's, even if they didn't really know him in this reality. That still left a lot of unfilled spaces.  
  
It was after lunch that the answer came to him. If he could convince the Amazons to get rid of a few of their more retarded laws, they would make perfect members of his group. He couldn't take only Amazons though, but it was a start. He did have five months to decide.  
  
"Could I get a lift to China?" Ranma asked Dr. Peterson after he had had a soldier find her for him.  
  
"What for?" she aked in turn.  
  
"Well, some of the people I want to take are there."  
  
"I would need to talk to General Yashida about arranging transport, but we could probably have you there by tomorrow. Where exactly in China do you want to go?"  
  
"Bankayla Mountains, I think. I could point it out on a map."  
  
"Good. I'm sorry, but I'm terribly busy so could you let me get back to work?"  
  
"Sure."   
****  
  
The helicopter was still a hundred feet in the air when Ranma jumped from the open door. His descent was fast and straight right up until the final dozen or so feet when he tucked himself into a ball and flipped forward once, landing on his feet. Around Ranma there was a three meter in diameter depression in the ground where he had instinctively cushioned his landing with chi. He looked up to the helicopter and saw one of the commandoes that had been sent along to ensure his safety leaning out the door. The poor man looked like he had had a heart attack and was working on a stroke.  
  
Amazons were gathering outside the gates to see the spectacle. Most had never heard of helicopters, let alone seen one in person. Ranma headed for them before the helicopter landed. When he was only a couple hundred feet from the milling crowd of armed amazons, they cleared a corridor and a familiar figure hopped into view. Cologne's face didn't show any of the excitement or wonder that her younger fellows did. In fact she looked very old, just like she always did. She met Ranma halfway.  
  
"I can assume that we aren't being invaded by the Chinese government?" she asked him.  
  
"Nah, I'm just here to do you all a favor."  
  
"What kind of favor?" Cologne asked suspicsiously.   
****  
  
Cologne looked the young man up and down, not unlike one would a cow before purchasing it. His entrance had been quite spectacular and it had demonstrated, to a certain degree, his skill as a warrior. If the boy hadn't maintained such an iron grip on his chi, Cologne might have considered having Shampoo challenge him, but no one put that much effort in to containing something unless there was a lot of it or it was very dangerous. And there were six heavily armed and armored men running up to him from the helicopter.  
  
"It'd be best if I told you someplace private." he answered."Trust me, please."  
  
"Very well, but your men will have to remain behind."  
  
He nodded and told the men to stay with the chopper. They argued at first, but it was obvious that he was in charge and they eventually followed his instructions. Once again the human corridor opened, this time for Cologne and her guest. Her prescence also kept the younger and more curios of the tribe from bothering him.  
  
Cologne led him to a moderately sized building near the center of the village. This one, unlike the others structures in the village that were made of bamboo and had thatched, was constructed from cut stone and had a wood shingle roof."I'm Cologne, Matriarch of the Joketsozuko, and these women are my fellow elders." She said when they entered. The other elders were arrayed behind a curved table and all the seats except for hers was full.  
  
"I'm Ranma Saotome, student of the Saotome School of Anything Goes Martial Arts."  
  
As Ranma's introduction was heard, several of the elders began shouting. Ranma obviously didn't understand what they were saying, something Cologne was very glad of. Just because he practiced the same school as Happy, didn't mean he should die. At lest in her opinion."Silence!" she shouted in Japanese for Ranma's benefit. They were instantly quiet. No one crossed the Matriarch when she was upset."Ranma has come here to offer us something. I believe we should hear him out." Cologne motioned for Ranma to speak.  
  
He began,"A few days ago I found out that the world is going to be destroyed by a distortion in space. Since the people that are trying to save some of the human race need me to make their plan work, they're letting me bring some people with to the new planet they've found. The world is called NEO and the scientists say that humans should be able to live there very easily."  
  
"Why are you bringing this to our attention?" asked Cologne. She was finding Ranma's story hard to believe.  
  
"Because I want some of the amazons to go with us. It would save your culture and hopefully help to keep a Martial tradition going later on."  
  
"How many of our people would be permitted to go?" asked one of the elders.  
  
"Right now it would be thirty, but if the Musk and Phoenix people refuse my offer it could be up to ninety."  
  
"They are our most hated rivals!" exclaimed another.  
  
Ranma shrugged."So what? They are also people and I won't deny them the opportunity to survive."  
  
Cologne smiled in appreciation. Ranma had good character. And his calm rebuff actually managed to shut Sho Pi's mouth.  
  
"If we agreed, and that is if we believe you, when would the decision need to be made?"  
  
"Within the next week. Those that are going will need to be trained to use the equipment and all of them have to get DNA tests to make sure they aren't sick or prone to cancer and stuff."  
  
Cologne told Ranma to wait outside while she and the elders discussed his proposal.  
****  
  
Ranma had been napping against the wall for nearly an hour when Cologne walked out of the Council building. All the amazons who had been watching him while he slept scattered when she appeared."So?"  
  
"The Council and I believe you and have chosen the thirty amazons that are to accompany you. They've been chosen for their intelligence, skill as warriors, and their family bloodline. They are our best."  
  
"Bloodline?"  
  
"Many amazons ancestors were great heroes or phenomenal fighters. Bloodlines are carefully monitored and crossed to give our offspring the best traits of them all."  
  
It sounded like animal breeding to Ranma, but they were amazons and therfore unusual."Oh, okay. One more thing. The amazons that go can't apply the marriage laws."  
  
Cologne quirked an eyebrow and said,"You certainly know a lot about us. Most people don't even know that we exist."  
  
"I know a whole lot more about you than you would believe." After a few moments of uneasy silence, he admitted."To tell you the truth, the reason I know about you guys is because I'm from another universe, that's what Dr. Peterson says. In my universe I was engaged to an amazon."  
  
"Any hope of reaquanting yourself with her?"  
  
"No."  
  
Ranma left the village shortly thereafter and once he was in the helicopter, took off for the Musk Citadel.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
